Kissing Practice
by boogityboo
Summary: Keely's never been kissed. Now she wants to be more than ever. Can Phil help her out?
1. Chapter 1

Hi Phil Fans. Here's the first chapter of my new POTF story. It's not related at all to my other one, Happy Nirday Phil. Totally new situation but still Pheely, of course.I hopeyou like it. I'm slammed with schoolwork these days, so this one will probably not be finished as fast as the other one. But I'll do my best. Thanks!

Kissing Practice

Chapter 1

Phil and Keely were doing what they did nearly every day after school: homework at the Diffy house. Phil was using the Giggle to research William Shakespeare for an English assignment, and Keely was struggling with math, every so often, with a wrinkled brow and a pained expression, asking Phil for answers.

"Come on, Phil, please? I don't need math for a journalism career. Don't think of it as _giving_ me the answers. Think of it as taking a chance on an unknown kid," Keely said, batting her eyelashes in a way she knew her best friend couldn't resist.

"Keely, Keely, Keely," Phil said from behind the Giggle screen, "What'll happen when we go to college and you don't have me there to help you?"

"Phil, we're going to college together, duh. We'll never be apart," Keely said, rolling her eyes.

Phil laughed and glanced at her math homework. "Okay, Keel, then answer's x equals nine."

"Ooh thanks, Philly. I'm so lucky to have a math genius for a best friend." Keely said. She kissed him on the cheek.

Phil blushed. "So every time I give you an answer, you'll kiss me?" he asked.

"Oh Phil, come on. You act like no girl has ever kissed you before," Keely said, softly punching him on the shoulder. Phil laughed. Keely didn't know much about Phil's 2121 romantic life. She'd been dying to find out if he had a girlfriend back home, but she'd never known how to approach the subject. Keely was more than aware of her own experience with boys, which was, except for a lively game of spin the bottle in eighth grade, virtually nonexistent. She'd never been kissed on the lips, even though she'd had the chance plenty of times. Keely Teslow has mastered the art of avoiding lip contact. It was nerves more than anything, and she felt as though she'd just never met the right boy for the job. Since she'd befriended Phil Diffy, the guys at school had pretty much left her alone. She was beginning to think she'd grow up completely inexperienced in the kissing department. _On my wedding night,_ Keely thought, _I'm gonna be in big trouble._ Keely did know she'd eventually get married, kissing or not. She had seen the engagement ring herself on Phil's Giggle.

After a few minutes of silent schoolwork, Keely looked up at Phil.

"What is it Keely? You've got that look," Phil said.

"Look? What are you talkin' 'bout, Diffy?" Keely asked.

"You want another answer, don't you?" Phil said.

"Maybe... but... it's not exactly a homework answer," Keely said.

"Okay, what?" Phil said.

"Phil, have you ever kissed a girl on the lips?" Keely asked him, redness creeping over her cheeks. For some reason asking Phil this question made her nervous.

"Well, I, Keely..." Phil said. Phil knew Keely had never kissed anyone in her life. She openly discussed the fact that she was destined to be the oldest unkissed girl in history. When she mentioned kissing in any context, Phil always felt awkward.

"Yes?" Keely said, smiling at him. "Well?"

"Yes, I've kissed a girl on the lips," Phil said. "Are you happy?"

Keely nodded. She felt strange about his answer to her question. She had hoped that maybe he was as inexperienced as she was, and now that she knew he wasn't, she was somewhat jealous of these mystery lips Phil had kissed.

"Ohmigosh, Phil. Who? When? How old were you?" Keel asked him.

"Keel. Why is this so important? I have this essay to finish..." Phil said.

"It's research, Phil. I need to know these things about my best friend. We're supposed to tell each other everything, right? You've been withholding crucial information from me," Keely said, smirking.

"Okay then, Keel, I've kissed a girl on the lips more than once. So there," Phil said. He had a strange desire to make her jealous. _Why is she suddenly so interested in my love life,_ he thought.

Keely's jaw dropped. "Wow, Phil, I didn't know you were such a ladies' man," Keely said. She was becoming a little irritated with Phil, for some reason. _Keely,_ she thought, _why do you care about Phil's kissing?_

"Keely, I'm no ladies man. You can trust me on that one. I've kissed one girl on the lips, twice. It was a couple years before I came to this century. Do I have to show you on the Giggle?" he asked her.

"You mean we could watch you have your first kiss on the Giggle?" Keely asked. _I wonder if he's a good kisser,_ Keely thought. "Yes. Show me."

"Okay, okay..." Phil turned back to the Giggle. "Search Phil Diffy, first kiss, 2119," he said. After a few seconds, the Giggle stopped. "You ready to witness this Phil Diffy milestone?" Phil said, eyeing Keely. "Slide over here." He patted the couch cushion next to him.

Keely felt awkward as she snuggled next to Phil, cheek to cheek, behind the Giggle screen. _This is weird,_ she thought. _I want to see it and I don't._

The screen showed a young Phil Diffy, a little younger and a little shorter, wearing a bright green jumpsuit. He was sitting on a bench on a street corner. It seemed to be early in the morning. "That's the school-shuttle stop," Phil said.

"Oh, Phil you were so cute," Keely said.

"_Was_ cute? What are you trying to say?" Phil said, grinning at her.

"Well, you're adorable now, of course, but look at little baby Phil!" she said.

Phil blushed. _Keely thinks I'm adorable?_ He felt his heart swell a little bit.

"Oh, here she comes!" Keely said, pointing at a girl, about twelve, with blond braided pigtails, who walked up behind the bench. Little Phil didn't notice her. He was playing with a Wizard.

"Lucy Davis," Phil said, smiling slightly. "A real sweetheart. Too good for me. She was a year behind me in school."

"Oh, Phil a younger woman!" Keely said.

On the Giggle screen, Lucy covered Little Phil's eyes with her hands. Little Phil was grinning.

"You haven't lost that cute grin, Phil," Keely said.

"It is cute, huh?" Phil said. He looked at Keely's profile through the corners of his eyes. "You sort of remind me of Lucy, you know?" Phil said.

"Really?" Keely asked. _I remind him of his first kiss?_ Keel thought to herself. She suddenly felt fidgety.

"Here it comes," Phil said. Lucy had by this time walked around to sit next to Little Phil on the bench. Lucy wore a pale pink skirt and top with some kind of silver stripes down the sides and tall purple boots. Little Phil shoved the Wizard he had been playing with into a satchel on the ground. Lucy grabbed his hand. "See, it was all her doing. I was too self-conscious. Lucy wore the pants in that relationship, that's for sure," Phil said, laughing a little.

Lucy put her other hand on Little Phil's cheek and turned him toward her so that they looked directly into each other's face. Little Phil was trying to avoid direct eye contact.

"Phil, you won't even look at her," Keely said. "Didn't you like her?"

Phil hit the pause button on the Giggle. "Well, I didn't know what I thought, Keel. I mean, we had always been pals, you know? I didn't realize she liked me so much until that day." He pressed the play button. Lucy leaned in and gave Little Phil a soft kiss on the lips. Little Phil's eyes stayed open, big as saucers, and he froze. Lucy then lay her head on Little Phil's shoulder. Then Giggle stopped and Phil pulled on the screen and it rolled back into the helmet. Keely leaned back on the couch.

"Well, what happened next?" Keely asked. "When was this _alleged_ second kiss on the lips?"

"The next day she kissed me at school. I think she was fed up with my lack of initiative," Phil said. "I just didn't know how to handle it. I didn't know how I felt about her, or really how to respond, so she dumped me two days later."

Keely laughed. "Aw, Phil. Poor little guy." Keely was somewhat relieved to find that Phil wasn't head over heels for this Lucy girl. But it also worried her, for some reason, that Phil had said Keely reminded him of her. _She is cute, though,_ Keely thought. _And has great fashion sense. _

Phil watched Keely. He could always tell when she was thinking hard about something. As if he could read her mind, he said, "You know, she reminds me of you only because she was so sweet and, I don't know, enthusiastic about life. I was in awe of her, to tell you the truth. I didn't think I could ever have a girl like her. That kiss came so out of the blue, I think I was in shock."

Phil's words embarrassed Keely slightly. _What's he saying, exactly,_ she wondered. _He doesn't like me, like me_... Keely was all of a sudden tongue-tied. "Well, you know, I mean, girls are weird, you know, Phil. Phillip." She twisted her fingers together. "Well, um, back to that math." She picked up her notebook and stared at it, but she wasn't able to concentrate. _I wonder what it would feel like to kiss Phil,_ she wondered, biting her bottom lip a little. She looked over at him. He was hunkered over his laptop, now, typing up a storm. _Why don't you find out, Teslow. You know you want to,_ Keely's conscience was kicking in now. _You don't want to be the last unkissed girl at school, do you?_ Keely was fully aware that she might already be the last unkissed girl not only at H.G. Wells, but in the entire teenage population of Pickford.

Phil, although he was typing madly on the computer, could barely focus. Seeing the kiss again flooded his mind with these feelings he'd been trying to sort out. Feelings for a certain blond best friend sitting on the couch next to him. He watched her biting her bottom lip in deep concentration. _Come on, Diffy, Keely's never even kissed a boy. You could be the first. You could be that person, that experience, she never forgets._ His conscience was taking over. _But I've never kissed a a girl,_ Phil thought._ I mean, Lucy kissed me. I never had to actually work up the courage to do it. I wonder what it would feel like to kiss Keely Teslow._


	2. Chapter 2

HI Phil fans. Here's chapter 2! Thanks for all of your amazing review from chapter 1. Enjoy!

Chapter 2

The next day at school, Keely asked Via about her first kiss.

"Well, Keely, it was kind of awkward," Via said. "I mean, neither of us really knew what we were doing. But it was sweet, because I really liked Sam—that was his name. It was after soccer practice. He was on the boys' team, and I was on the girls'. And we kissed underneath the stands."

"Aw, Via. That's so sweet. Sam..." Keely said, dreamily. "I wish that would happen to me. Why hasn't it?"

"Keely, you told me yourself that it's almost happened a million times, but you always put a stop to it," Via said.

"I know. I think next time, I'm gonna give in," Keely said. "I'm just too old for this."

"Now, Keely, that's not what I meant," Via said. "I think it should be with the person who you want it to be with. It's better that way. No matter how old you are."

"You don't think I'm a little bit to old be never have kissed a boy?" Keely said.

"Well, maybe you're a little old, but age isn't as important as who, and I think you know that part of the equation," Via said, smiling.

"Yeah? And who did you have in mind?" Keely said.

"Come on, Keely," Via said. "What do you mean who? I think you know."

"Via…." Keely said, "I mean, I think I know who, but it's not like I can just come out and say, 'Kiss me, Phil.' "

"Somebody say my name?" Phil said, walking up to Keely and Via, grinning. Keely turned green.

"Oh, hi…. Phil," said Via.

Keely was mortified. She couldn't speak.

"Phil, you didn't just hear us, did you?" Via said.

"Not a thing. Promise. Just my name," Phil said. He was intrigued, though. Keely was being uncharacteristically silent. _What have I interrupted?_ he thought.

"Well, then, I'm just going to walk over…. there.…" Via wandered into the hallway traffic, leaving Phil and Keely alone.

"Keel?" said Phil, waving his hand in front of her eyes. "Earth to Keely, come in Keely."

"Yeah, Phil," Keely said flatly.

"Everything okay? You look a little green," Phil said. He put his hand on her forehead like he was taking her temperature, and Keely swatted at it.

"I'm fine, really, Phil, fine. I guess I need to get to class." Keely said, avoiding his eyes. _Why did I have to ask him about the whole kissing thing?_ She wondered to herself. _I just want everything to be normal. If he kisses me, he kisses me. I'm not saying anything. _

"Keel, it's lunchtime," Phil said.

"Oh, right," Keely tried to laugh. "Sorry, kinda out of it today," she said. She looked at Phil. He was standing really close to her. She could see the tiny brown stubble on his cheekbones. She could smell his shampoo. He also smelled like outside, like grass and fresh air. _He smells really good,_ she thought. She had an urge to lean against his body, to touch him, and she reached out her hand and placed it on his chest.

"Uh, Keel?" Phil said, looking at her hand and then smiling at her. "Whatcha doin'?" He glanced around the busy hallway. People were beginning to look at them.

"We're best friends, Phil," she said. Her eyes looked kind of glassy to Phil. Like she wasn't all-the-way awake.

Phil nodded. "Yes, Keel. The bestest," _This is a little strange,_ he thought. _She doesn't usually get all fuzzy-eyed like this._ In fact, Phil had only seen Keely this way once before, when he'd surprised her with a picnic for her birthday.

"Good," Keely said. She looked into Phil's eyes and searched them for a sign. _A sign of what?_ She thought. _I don't even know what I'm looking for._ "Sorry I'm kind of weird today, Phil. I don't know what's gotten into me."

"It's fine, Keel. We all have days like that," Phil said. "Lunch?"

"Yeah," Keely said. She let her hand linger on Phil's chest for a moment though, before grabbing his elbow and walking alongside him toward the cafeteria.

Suddenly Phil had a thought. "Hey Keely? Is that conversation we had yesterday bugging you?"he said.

Keely stopped in her tracks. _Is he psychic? _she thought. "Well, maybe, Phil…. I don't know. I just kind of want the whole thing to be over with. It's like I'm the only one, you know?" Keely said, staring straight ahead.

"Well, see, I just had a thought…. I think I could help you," Phil said, his insides squirming. _Phillip Diffy,_ his conscience was saying, _don't you take advantage of this girl!_ _I'm not,_ Phil said back to himself. _She wants a guy to kiss her. I'm a guy. It's a victimless crime. And maybe I can decide about these "feelings" for real. If there are any sparks, I'll be able to tell. And it's better it's with me than just someone who doesn't care about her, Bruno for instance. This way I'm sort of protecting her. It's my duty as her friend who's a boy._

"Really? You could coach me in kissing?" Keely said. She was slightly taken aback. "Um, well, _who _would I kiss?" she said, eyeing him suspiciously.

Phil's stomach lurched. Suddenly he felt guilty about this little experiment. "Well, I mean, well, _of course_ it would be a separate party. A replicate, to be precise," Phil said. "Yes. A replicate. I'll create a kissee for you to practice on." Phil's heart was racing now. _Well there go all your free Keely kisses, Diffy,_ he thought. _Replicate? Why did I say that? _

"Phil! That's a great idea! Like a movie star?" Keely said, he eyes bright. She jumped up and down.

"We'll see…. A replicate. Yeah, that way there's no… you know… feelings…" Phil said.

"Oh my gosh, I have _got_ to tell Via!" Keely squealed.

"Wait! Keels! You can't tell anyone! What would Via say when you said a replicate was going to be your kissing partner?" Phil said, grabbing her by the shoulder. "You can't tell a soul, got it? This has to be our little secret."

"Oh, gosh, right. Sorry… Woops! Here's my head?" she was grinning ear to ear. The sight of her face so illuminated and happy made Phil weak in the knees.

"So, why don't we meet after school. My house?" Phil said.

"I am _so_ there, Phil. And I am so excited!" Keely said. She attacked him with a bear hug. "You are the greatest best friend I have ever had, ever!"

"You are too, Keels. Now let's go to lunch before I eat my hand," Phil said.

"How could I possibly eat at a time like this, Phil? I want my breath to be completely untainted. All I'm eating is peppermints," Keely said. Phil rolled his eyes_. I've created a monster,_ he thought, as they walked into the cafeteria.


	3. Chapter 3

hi Phil Fans. Here's Chappie 3. It might be a little corny, but I liked writing it. This one's more Phil's side of the story, so Chapter 4 will be Keely's take on the same situation, I think. Anyway, enjoy.

Chapter 3

After school, Phil walked to his house alone. Keely wanted to go home and change before the big event, and when he saw her walking up the path to the Diffys' front door a couple hours later, she did look great. Dressed simply in blue jeans and a bright pink sweater, Phil thought she had never looked better.

"Hey, Phil," Keely said excitedly. "You like?" she twirled around to give him a better view.

"Uh, yeah, you look... perfect," he said, flushed. "You look comfortable, too, which is a big part of the whole kissing thing. You want to be as comfortable as possible."

"I know!" squealed Keely. "That's why I thought jeans. I love jeans. These are new. And I moisturized and brushed my teeth like fifteen times. And I got new perfume just for this occasion. It's called 'Kiss Me'—isn't that perfect?" She held her wrist under Phil's nose. Keely's eyes darted around the room. "Well, where's the lucky man?" she said.

"Who?" said Phil, dizzy from breathing in the perfume.

"The replicate, Phil. Hello?" Keely said.

"Oh, right, sorry," Phil said. "Well, I haven't replicated anyone yet. I thought you should tell me what you're looking for, you know, in a guy... to kiss..."

"Well…" Keely though, scratching her head. But before she could describe anyone, Barb walked into the living room.

"Oh, hi Keely," she said.

"Hi, Mrs. Diffy. Did Phil tell you he's helping me with—" Keely asked.

Phil interrupted. "School. I'm helping her with school. Math. Big numbers. Great big ones," he said, motioning for Keely not to say anything.

"Well, that's my Phil. Always lending a hand," Barb said. "Are you staying for dinner, Keely? I can set another place at the table."

"Sure, Mrs. Diffy, that would be great," Keely said. "What was that about, Phil?" she said after Barb was out of earshot. "Why can't your mom know? She knows all about replicates."

"I don't know, Keel, I just..." Phil floundered. Barb knew all about Phil's feelings for Keely. His mother was the only one who he could talk to about it, and she thought Phil should have said something to Keely ages ago. But he really didn't want her involved with this kissing thing. "Well, she's, you know, old..."

"Whatever, Phil," Keely said. "Let's get this show on the road. Come on." She grabbed his hand and led him upstairs to his room. She sat down in his desk chair and began skimming magazines, looking for potential replicates. Phil sat on the bed, the replicator in his hands.

"You understand that the replicate will be exactly who's in the picture. So if it's an actor, say, dressed in an alien suit, then the replicate is an actor in an alien suit," Phil explained. "Unless you replicate a real person, like someone in this room, then you won't get the actual person... and even if you did, a replicate can't think for himself. He's not much more than a robot. Does that make any sense?" _There's no way she's going to just think of replicating you, Diffy. Look at her going through those magazines._

"Yep... found him," Keely said. She held up a picture of Johnny Depp dressed as a pirate.

"Keel, if I replicate him, you're gonna wind up kissing a pirate. Look at him. He doesn't look like he's had a shower… ever. And I think he's missing some teeth," Phil said.

"So? Johnny Depp as a dirty, toothless pirate is better than no Johnny Depp at all. Replicate him, Future Boy, I don't have all day," she said, tapping her foot impatiently on the floor.

"Well, should we discuss technique at all? Form? Breathing? Nose position?" Phil offered. He thought if he could get Keely's mind off of Johnny-Depp-as-a-pirate, maybe she'd get sidetracked and forget him altogether. "Wait, hang on a second."

Phil left the room and came back a moment later with a teddy bear.

"This is Pim's bear, Dennis," Phil said. "Maybe you should get acquainted with him before the real thing. Huh?" He wagged Dennis in front of Keely's face. She took him from his hands, reluctantly.

"Phil, this is kind of corny, don't you think?" Keely said, looking at Dennis disgustedly. Pim had received Dennis on her third Nirday, and he was pretty shabby.

"Well, what if I make him bigger, you know, so that at least you're about the same height?" Phil offered, shrugging.

"Okay," Keely said with a sigh.

Phil zapped Dennis with the Wizard and suddenly Keely was holding a nearly-six-foot stuffed bear.

"Kiss him," said Phil, grinning.

"Phil... this is just not what I had in mind," Keely whined. "Do I have to?"

"Keel. Do you want to be an expert kisser or not?" Phil said. _This would be so much easier, Diffy, if you just took her in your arms and made it happen, once and for all,_ Phil thought. _She does look pretty ridiculous with that bear._ "Just do it once, Keel."

Keely shut her eyes and leaned in and kissed Dennis, then looked over at Phil, who was on his back laughing.

"Phil, stop it. Phil. I'm serious. Stop it," she said, frowning. Phil kept laughing. "Stop it now and replicate Johnny for me."

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry, Keel," Phil said, out of breath. "I just wish you could have seen how serious your face was." Phil shrunk Dennis back to his normal size and aimed the Wizard at the magazine photograph of Johnny Depp in a pirate getup. "Okay, Keel. This is it. Are you ready for your life to change?" Phil teased her.

"Phil, I think you're trying to delay this whole process. You're the one who came up with this plan, so you'd better cooperate," she said firmly. Phil scowled and pressed some buttons on the Wizard. He wanted the whole thing to be over with as much as Keely did. He couldn't bear to watch her kiss Johnny Depp, though, so he figured he'd let them have some alone time. There was a flash and then there he was, Johnny Depp himself, standing on Phil's bed.

"Argh," Johnny said.

"Uh, hi, Mr. Pirate. I'd like to introduce you to my friend, Keely," Phil grabbed Keely's hand and yanked her toward the bed. "Keely, this is Mr. Pirate."

"Hi, Johnny," Keely said. She held out her hand.

"Name's Captain Jack Sparrow," Johnny said.

"Now, why don't you two get to know each other," Phil said. "Keel, I'm just gonna go check on something. You think you can handle this?"

"I don't know, Phil," Keely said. By this time Johnny the Pirate was picking his teeth with a short knife that had been fastened to his belt. "He's kind of old, don't you think?" Keely eyed Johnny uneasily.

"Old?" Phil asked. "So you'd like to go younger?"

"Well, I just hadn't really considered age, but now that he's here, it's a little, you know, gross that he's so old," she said, furrowing her brow. "Zap him back."

"If you say so," Phil said. He took the Wizard from his pocket and aimed it at Johnny Depp. "Captain Sparrow, I'm afraid I have to send you back to your, uh, ship," Phil said.

"My dear girl," Johnny said to Keely, "It never would have worked between us." And he grinned devilishly. Phil pushed the Wizard's buttons and the pirate was back inside the magazine, safe and sound.

Keely sat down on Phil's bed. "Maybe this is all just a bad idea," she said, pensively. "I should just relax and let things happen as they happen. Right?" She looked at Phil. _Gosh, she's pretty,_ he thought. _Keel,_ he wanted to tell her, _I can do it. I can kiss you. For practice. _

"I don't know Keel. Maybe it _would_ be better as a surprise. That way you don't have to worry about it. It'll just happen, you know?" Phil said. He hated seeing her so distraught over something that should be a happy experience.

"Yeah," Keely said. "I want it to be with someone I really like. Someone I trust. Someone I'm totally comfortable with. Someone who won't, you know, think I'm weird cause I've never kissed anyone before." She picked up Dennis the bear and nervously twiddled one of his ears with her fingers.

Phil took a deep breath. "Keel?" he said, turning toward her.

"Yeah?" she said. She looked into his eyes hopefully.

"What about…" He stammered.

"What about… ?" she said.

"What if I replicated… myself?" he said then he leaned back and looked at her, trying to read her expression. To his surprise, a smile crept over her face. "I mean, it wouldn't be me, exactly, but it would you know, look like me, and we're best friends, and so, it would be comfortable for you, I guess…"

"Are you sure, Phil?" she asked, tucking a stay hair behind her ear. "Because that just may work."

"Yeah, it's no big deal…" Phil said. He stood and aimed the replicator at himself. _It's the next best thing, right Diffy?_ He thought. _At least this way she's not kissing any other guys. This may be as close as you ever get._

In a swirl of gold light, Phil 2 appeared, identical to Phil number one. Keely looked from Phil 2 to Phil 1. "This is freaky, Phil," she said.

"I know… we don't have to do this, Keel, if you don't want to…" Phil 1 said.

"Do what?" said Phil 2.

"Kiss Keely," said Phil 1.

"Who's Keely?" Phil 2 asked.

Phil 1 rolled his eyes. "See what I mean?" he said to Keely. "He's only a lookalike. We don't share anything more than that. So, there's no, um, feelings, or memories, or personality at all, okay?"

"Okay," Keely said. She looked at Phil 2. "So what should I do with him?" she said back to Phil 1.

"Well, just kiss him," he said.

"But, I mean, how?" she asked.

"Keely, put your lips on mine—I mean Phil's—you know, and close your eyes, and just do it," Phil said.

Keely closed her eyes and puckered her lips. She leaned over to Phil 2. Then she stopped, opened her eyes, and looked at Phil 1. "I can't do this, Phil," she said. "Not with you watching."

"Okay, I'll, um, give you two some time alone…" he said. "I'll just go downstairs…." Phil 1 stood and left his room, with Keely and his replicate sitting side by side on the bed. He shut the door behind him, hesitated, and opened it a crack, peering through. Keely's lips were puckered up again, and she was leaning toward Phil 2. Phil couldn't bear it, so he shut the door again and sat down on the floor.

_How can I be so jealous of myself?_ He thought. _She's so amazing looking when her eyes are closed like that, with her hair falling around her face… _Phil pressed his ear against the door, trying to listen for any sounds. Silence. He wanted to scream or to jump up and go in his room and knock Phil 2's lights out. _Can't do that, Phil. Got to focus. Let her get this thing done. Then you can try for yourself. Maybe the replicate's a good kisser. Maybe she'll be all over you after this is finished. _He pressed his ear to the door again. Nothing. He looked at his watch. Five minutes gone. _It seems like it's been a year since I left them in there. Only five minutes?_

Phil daydreamed about the first time he met Keely. He tried to decide when he'd fallen for her. It happened like rain. _Like little drops of water,_ he thought. A drop at a time until he had found himself soaking wet and standing in a puddle, mad for her. This wonderful adorable girl. Who was in his room this minute kissing his replicate. Five more minutes passed. He pressed his ear on the door again. This time he heard footsteps. Then the door opened and Phil was suddenly sprawled out on his back in the doorway, looking at Keely upside down.

"Hey, Keel," Phil said, blushing. "I was just, um, waiting here… on the floor, for you, you know…"

"Hey, Phil," Keely whispered. She was trying to suppress a grin. Her face was flushed and Phil thought her hair was disheveled somewhat.

Phil glanced over at Phil 2, still sitting on the edge of the bed. He had a sleepy look on his face. And lipstick. It had happened. Keely had finally kissed a boy. And that boy had been Phil. Sort of.


	4. Chapter 4

This takes place when Phil leaves Keely and Phil 2 alone in his room…. Hopefully this will give you a good idea about where the story is headed. Enjoy!

Chapter 4

As soon as Phil shut the door, Keely turned to Phil 2. She closed her eyes and puckered her lips and moved toward him, fully intent on kissing him. But she thought she heard the door open up again, so she pulled away in a hurry, glancing at the door to see it snap shut. Then she gazed at the replicate.

"This is amazing," she whispered to Phil 2.

"What's amazing?" Phil 2 whispered to Keely.

"How much you look like him. And sound like him. And feel like him," she put her hand on his cheek, and then felt the hair around his ear gently. Phil 2 smiled. "And the smile, it's identical…" _So this is what it would be like, to be with Phil Diffy. To be his girlfriend. To sit up here in his room, and be more than pals,_ she thought as she gazed into Phil 2's eyes.

Keely scooted close to Phil 2. Then she eased her arm around his shoulders and leaned her head against his. She shut her eyes and just sat there for a moment, enjoying being so close to him, privately.

"Hey, Phil 2," she said.

"Hey, Keely," said Phil 2.

"Would you mind too much, if we could just lie down here for a little while?" Keely asked. She was amazed at her courage. It was things like this she secretly longed to do with the real Phil. To just lie down next to him, to feel the warmth of his body so close.

"I wouldn't mind, Keely," Phil 2 said.

So Keely and Phil 2 leaned back onto Phil's bed, side by side. Keely took his hand and held it tightly. She came very close to falling asleep, daydreaming about Phil and when exactly she thought she'd fallen for him. She knew she'd had a little crush on him that first day. But when did she first get this tightness in her chest whenever she saw him? When did he start creeping into her dreams? When did he become the first person she thought of in the morning and the last person she thought of at night? Keely couldn't put her finger on that moment. It had been gradual, she decided. Like sand falling through an hourglass. All of a sudden she was hopelessly in love with Phil. Her best friend. She decided then that she could only kiss one boy in the world.

"Phil 2, what time is it?" she asked.

"It's six fifteen," he said.

"Oh gosh, we've been in here forever!" she said, sitting up suddenly. "We have to make it look like we kissed. Here, sit up."

Keely rummaged in her pocketbook until she found a tube of lipstick. She untwisted it and smeared a little on her fingers, then smeared her fingers lightly on Phil 2's mouth. Then she tousled his hair with her hand.

"Okay, I think that looks pretty good," she said, examining his face. "Now sit there and try to look, I don't know, sort of dazed."

"Okay, Keely," Phil 2 said.

Keely stood and walked over to the door. When she opened it, Phil—the real Phil—tumbled out at her feet. She couldn't help but smile at him. _If only he knew how much I want to kiss him, to actually be with him, _she thought,_ the real Phil… _

"Hey, Keel," Phil said, blushing. "I was just, um, waiting here… on the floor, for you, you know…"

"Hey, Phil," Keely said. She saw Phil glance over at Phil 2, sitting on the bed. "You can zap him back, you know, if you want."

"Uh, okay, everything okay?" Phil asked her, righting himself, and standing up. He reached into his pocket for the replicator.

"Everything's fine. It's good. I'm fine," Keely said.

"Well? Are you gonna tell me anything?" Phil said.

"Tell you what?" Keely said, grinning.

"What happened? That's what?" he said. "I mean, I guess I can tell what happened. The kid's got lipstick all over his face."

"Phil, it's over. Don't worry about it. Let's just move on," Keely said.

Phil aimed the replicator at Phil 2. Phil 2 waved. "Bye, Keely," he said.

"Bye, Phil 2," Keely said, smiling at the replicate. "Thanks for your help."

"Any time, Keely," Phil 2 said. Then Phil zapped him and he was gone.

Phil frowned.

"What?" said Keely. _Is he a little jealous? Of his own replicate?_ she thought.

"It's just…" he said.

"Yeah?" Keely said.

"It's just… I mean…. Well, am I a good kisser?" he blurted.

Keely laughed. "Well, I don't know about _you,_ Phil, but your carbon copy is a perfect gentleman."

"Can you describe it?" Phil asked.

"Describe what?" Keely said, smirking.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" Phil said. "You love torturing me."

"Put it this way, Phil," Keely said. "Your replicate is exactly like you in almost every way, except…"

"Except?" Phil said.

"Except he doesn't know his limits. I mean, he's not scared. He's… a risk taker," she said.

"So are you saying that I should take more risks?" Phil asked, looking at Keely suspiciously. "Well, have you ever thought about taking risks?"

"Yes," Keely said, avoiding Phil's stare.

"Yes?" Phil asked. "You have?"

"Yes," Keely said again.

"Well… what does this mean?" Phil asked.

"What does _what_ mean?" Keely asked, this time looking right at Phil, intently.

"I mean, we need to take more risks, right, so how should we do that?" Phil said.

"Well," Keel said. She took a deep breath. "Maybe we could start by being honest about our feel—"

"Kids?" Barb Diffy yelled up the stairs.

Phil shut his eyes. "Keel, hold that thought," he said. "Yeah, Mom, what's up?"

"Dinner's ready!" she shouted back.

"Okay, Mom, we'll be right there," Phil yelled. Then he opened his eyes and looked at Keely. He cleared his throat. "So, we need to be honest about…" he said. _This could be it, Diffy. Be honest about your feelings Diffy. I think this is right. This is it._

"Feelings, Phil," Keely said, "I want to be honest about what I feel… for… you." Then she stood there, in the doorway of his bedroom, searching his face with her eyes.

"I…" Phil began. He swallowed hard. He looked at the floor.

"Phil! Keely! Dinner!" Barb yelled.

Phil looked back at Keely and groaned. "Mom, we're on our way down. One second!"

"Keel, maybe we should go down there…" he said.

"Okay…" Keely said, shyly.

"We'll talk about this. Yes. We will. I want—I need—I need to tell you so many things…" he said. And he reached over and took her hand and smiled and led her down the stairs to the dinner table.


	5. Chapter 5

HI Phil Fans. I hope you haven't given up on me and my story. But, it's Spring Break this week and I haven't had a computer to work on… This is chapter 5. I had planned on ending it a different way, but I thought I'd leave you guys with a cliffhanger. Hopefully I can wrap this up in one more chapter…

Chapter 5

Keely had eaten dinner at the Diffys' dozens of times in the past two years. But this time was different. She and Phil had come close to saying _something_ upstairs in his room moments before, but they had been interrupted by spray-can meatloaf. Now, sitting at the table, trying to eat, Keely couldn't stop stealing glances at Phil. Every time she looked up, it seemed like he was looking back at her.

"Well, Keely, did Phil get you straightened out upstairs?" Barb said.

Keely nearly blew water out of her nose. "Oh, sure, Mrs. Diffy, we, uh, talked about what we need to do from here on out," she said.

"Yeah, Mom, I think Keely and I are on the same page… She's got the right idea," Phil said, looking at Keely.

"That's great, kids," Mr. Diffy said. He wasn't really listening. "Chemistry is important."

"Lloyd, they were working on math, not chemistry," Barb said to her husband.

"Yeah, Dad, chemistry's not the problem," said Phil. He blushed. Keely gulped and looked at her plate.

"This is disgusting," Pim said, looking from Keely to Phil. "Whatever's going on between you two, try not to make me puke at the dinner table."

"Pim!" said Barb. "What's gotten into you? I suggest you take a page from your brother's book. Get out there and make friends. Be a tutor to your little classmate, what's her name? Debbie?"

"Mom, don't ever mention that name again in my presence," Pim said, then she glared at Phil and Keely. "Diffy, Blondie, get a room." She stood and walked to the kitchen with her plate. "I will take my meals in here," she called, "from now on."

"I don't know what's gotten into your sister, Phil. I suspect she's entering her 'awkward years' and this is a blatant cry for attention," Barb said after Pim stomped out. "Lloyd, we should spend more time with her." She turned to Phil and Keely. "Well, you two, my advice is always communication. When I was your age, I was afraid to ask questions and I was never a good math student for that reason."

Keely and Phil looked at one another. "You're right about that," said Phil. "I think I need to start speaking my mind more often."

"Yeah," said Keely. "Just say what you feel... about math."

"Well, Keel," Phil said, smiling at her. "I really, _really_ like math."

"So do I," said Keely.

"And I'd like to, you know, have math in my life, like, um, every day," Phil said.

"Me, too," said Keely.

"Yeah. So. Yay math," said Phil.

"I love math," Keely blurted out. "I think I've loved it for a while. But I wasn't sure how to, you know, do anything about it."

"You love it?" said Phil.

"Mmm hmmm. Think so," Keely said, nodding her head.

"I am so impressed with your enthusiasm for school, kids!" Mrs. Diffy said. She and Lloyd picked up some dishes and took them back to the kitchen, leaving Phil and Keely alone.

"So are we still talking about math?" Phil said.

"What were _you_ talking about?" asked Keely.

"Me?" said Phil. "Uh, stuff, you know. Um, people. Yeah. People. You. Me."

"Yeah. People," Keely said.

"You want to go somewhere?" Phil said, motioning toward the door.

"Yes. Let's go somewhere," Keel said.

"Hey, Mom, if you don't need me in the kitchen." Phil called, "I'm, uh, gonna walk Keely home."

"You're off the hook tonight, Phil. Your sister has generously agreed to wash the dishes," Barb called from the kitchen. Pim groaned. "Keely, it was good seeing you."

"You too, Mrs. Diffy," said Keely. "Thanks for dinner."

"You're more than welcome, sweetie," said Barb.

Keely and Phil went out the front door, and sat down on the porch steps.

"So…" Keely said.

"So…" Phil said and he laughed.

"What's so funny?" Keely asked, looking at him.

"Well, Keel, I mean… Us. Everything," he said.

"Tell me about it," she said. "I mean _math_? Come on. I _hate_ math with a passion."

"Hey, are we talking about math or _math_?" Phil asked, holding up finger-quotes.

"I'm talking about real math," Keely said. "But I want to talk about something else."

"Like…" Phil said.

"Like you," Keely said.

"Knock yourself out, Keel," Phil said. He turned to her.

"Why me first?" Keel said.

"Ladies first, of course," Phil said.

"Well, okay, Phil, here it goes," Keely began, taking a breath. But before she could open her mouth, Pim appeared on the porch out of nowhere.

"Oh, am I interrupting something, Blondie?" she said to Keely. "Were you just about to tell my brother here how fuzzy-wuzzy he makes you feel? How you kiss your pillow every night and pretend it's him?"

Phil fumed. "Pim, if you don'tdisappear this instant,you'll be sorry," he said to his sister, clutching his Wizard tighly.

"Ooh, I'm so scared!" Pim yelled.

"It's okay, Phil," Keely said.

"Don't worry, Mr. Perfect, I was just on my way to find a drifter. Need to see another rated-R movie. Curtis doesn't cut it anymore…" Pim said, walking down the steps into the yard. "Don't let me stop your declaration of love, there, Blondie."

"You don't know anyone who wants to buy an adorable little sister, do you?" Phil said, after Pim was gone. "Real cheap."

"She's not so bad, Phil," Keely said, laughing. "She's pretty lucky, actually."

"Why's that?" Phil asked.

"'Cause she gets to live here, with you," Keely said.

"She probably doesn't consider herself lucky. More like incarcerated," Phil said."But I digress… You were saying something earlier…"

"Oh, right," Keely said, twisting her hands, and looking at her feet.

"You know, Keel, maybe we don't have to say anything," Phil said. "Maybe we already know what we feel. I mean, before today I wasn't sure… Then while you were in there kissing… my replicate… it kind of occurred to me how I feel—"

"We didn't," Keely said, interrupting Phil.

"Didn't you?" Phil asked.

"I couldn't," Keely said.

"You couldn't?" Phil asked.

"Well, of course he was pretty much perfect, and I could have… but it just wasn't what I wanted after all. I don't think it's the actual kiss that I want. I think it's the boy," Keely said. She looked up at Phil.

"The boy?" Phil asked.

"Yep," Keely said.

"Well," Phil said. "That can be arranged." He smiled at her warmly and reached over and took her hand. Keely leaned her head on his shoulder, and they sat there for a moment, not speaking.

"Hey Phil?" Keely said.

"Yeah?" Phil said.

"When I said it was the boy I wanted, not the kiss, I didn't mean I didn't _want _the kiss…" Keely said.

"Is that so?" Phil said.

"Yep," Keely said. She lifted her head and turned to face Phil, who suddenly looked nervous.

"Hey Keel?" he said. "Um, I uh, just ate meatloaf."

"So did I," Keely said.

"Why don't we… um…" Phil said.

"It doesn't matter, Phil," Keely said. "It can just be for practice."

"Okay," he said. Phil swallowed hard. He licked his lips.

But just as he leaned toward Keely to finally do what he had wanted to do as long as he had been in the 21st century, Pim was back, singing at the top of her lungs, "Diffy and Blondie sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G…"

"PIM!" Phil roared, standing up and jumping off the porch.

"Phil, wait," Keely said, but Phil didn't hear her. He ran after Pim, down the driveway and across the street.

"First comes love!" Pim sang.

"I'll turn you into a toilet seat!" Phil yelled. Keely saw a ray of green light flash from the Wizard.

"Then comes marriage!" Pim sang, apparently not a toilet seat, after all.

"I'll kick your—" Phil screamed, and then their voices drifted away. Keely could only hear the crickets chipping.

"Then comes Keely with a baby carriage," Keely whispered softly to herself, finishing Pim's song. She smiled, suddenly remembering the wedding band she had seen on the grown-up Keely's finger in the Giggle. _So the kiss wasn't tonight,_ she thought. _But I've waited this long… a little longer shouldn't matter._

Then Keely stood and slowly walked down the steps on the Diffys' front porch. She was thrilled inside. Finally, something was happening to her.


	6. Chapter 6

Phil Fans, Here's the conclusion to "Kissing Practice." Hope you like it. Thanks again for reading and all of your great reviews!

Chapter 6

Eight o'clock in Pickford might as well have been midnight. The streets were deserted and television screens flickered inside nearly every living room. Keely walked slowly toward her house wondering what exactly she was. _Am I his girlfriend?_ She thought. _He was just about to kiss me. _She smiled. She'd never seen Phil with a more serious expression. He had placed his hand on her knee. And then Pim came along and ruined it. But for some reason, Keely didn't mind. In fact, she kind of enjoyed prolonging the moment. Her heart was jumpy and her head full of Phil. She couldn't wipe the smile from her lips if she'd wanted to.

Phil emerged from the hedge between the Diffys' and Hackett's yard drenched in sweat and covered in leaves. Chasing after Pim, he had stumbled in the dark and fallen. He hadn't run that much since back in 2121 when he had been chased by aliens on his way to the tram stop one morning before school. On the porch, he saw a blond girl sitting on the steps, and, thinking it was Keely, he called out to her. "So, where were we, Keels? I'm sorry to, you know, ruin our, uh, um, first kiss, it's just… you know… I can't stand it when Pim…" Then he heard cackling he knew could only come from one source: Pim.

"First kiss? So that's what you were up to when I interrupted? Oh that's rich! Way to go, Diffy. Now she's gone. You left her here to chase after me?" Pim said, rolling off the steps and into the grass, shaking with laughter. "You have so much to learn, Big Brother."

"She's gone?" Phil asked, ignoring his sister. He took off down the driveway. As he rounded the corner, moments later, he saw a figure walking down the center of the road, illuminated buy a streetlamp. He stood still, watching her. At first he thought she was dancing, but as he continued to look at her, it was as though she were listening to music. Her head bobbed in some kind of rhythm she alone could hear. Phil grinned as he gazed at her. Her ponytail was falling out and stray hair floated all around her head. She had taken off her shoes and carried them now at her side, her fingers loosely hooked through the straps.

Phil started walking again, as quietly as possible, sneaking up behind her. When he was just inches from Keely's back, Phil quickly reached around her and covered her eyes with his hands.

Keely stopped walking and gasped. "Phil?" she whispered. His hands were warm and damp. She could feel his chest against her back, and she could hear him breathing heavily, like he'd been running. She dropped the shoes and grabbed his hands with hers and pulled them off of her eyes.

"How'd you know?" he whispered back. She spun around to look at him. Phil grinned his lopsided grin at her. "Are you mad?" he asked. Keely looked at his face. His cheeks were flushed with pink and his hair was wet and sticking in thick strands to his forehead.

"Don't be silly," she said, smiling back at him. "If she were my little sister, I would have gone after her, too."

"It's just that we were about to, you know," Phil said.

"I know, Phil," she said, smiling. Then Keely reached up and pulled a leaf from Phil's hair. She held the leaf in between their faces. "When I was little, my mom told me that if you catch a leaf as it's falling from a tree to the ground, you get to make a wish," she said.

"I never head that," Phil said. He pulled another leaf from his hair. "What do you get if they fall out of your hair?" he said.

Keely laughed. "I don't know. Wish something and we'll see if it works," she said.

Phil shut his eyes and wished. _Let everything go right tonight,_ he thought. "Okay, done," he said and he threw the leaf in the air. It pinwheeled to the pavement.

"Walk me home?" Keely asked him, picking up her shoes again and taking his hand.

" 'Course," Phil said. He squeezed her hand in his.

Keely looked over at Phil as they walked. "Phil, I really like this. It feels good," she said.

Phil smiled. "Yeah," he said, "It does."

"And I don't really know what to say except…" she hesitated.

"Yeah?" Phil asked her.

"Except that I love you, Phil," she said. "There, I said it."

At that second, Phil's heart nearly burst with happiness. "Me, too," Phil said. He cleared his throat. "Um, I mean, that I love you, too, Keel."

Keely beamed. A wave of warmth moved over her body. This was the happiest she had ever been in her life. But suddenly she thought of something that saddened her nearly to tears. "What happens if you have to go, Phil?" she asked.

"I don't know, Keel," Phil said. "Our love is all we have." He stopped walking at turned and looked at her.

"I'm sorry to get so serious like that," Keely said. "I just can't help it."

"I know," said Phil. "It's a weird situation. But I think we should just try and make this as normal as we can. Pretend that I'm not from the future. Put it out of our minds."

Keely smiled. "Okay," she said. Then she looked down at her feet. " Ugh. I think I need to put my shoes back on. The rocks are killing my feet. I can't decide what's worse, the sandles or the pavement."

Phil's face brightened. "Piggy back?" he said.

Keely grinned. "I haven't had a piggy back ride since I was like five!" she said. She stood behind Phil, threw her arms around his neck, and hopped up. Phil caught her legs under her knees and boasted her up. "I'm so heavy, huh?"

Phil shook his head. "Light as a feather," he said. "So where to? The night is still young."

Keely leaned her head close to Phil's ear. "The swings at the park," she whispered, not able to shake herself from the trance Phil put her under. She kept her face close to the nape of his neck, breathing in the warmth that radiated off of him.

"Watch out Keel, I'm, uh, not the cleanest man in the world right now," he said.

"I like the way you smell," Keely said into his ear. "All woodsy. Kind of like freshly-mowed grass," she said. "It's really not so bad."

"Well in that case," Phil said. They were at the park now. "You won't mind this!" And Phil released his hands from Keely's legs and she slid down off of his back into the grass, pulling Phil down with her. They landed in a heap, with Keely sprawled out on her back. Laughing hysterically, and Phil on top of her.

"I didn't exactly mean for_me _to fall," he said, trying to catch his breath from laughing. "Although, it's not so bad down here." Phil rolled off of Keely onto his side, and propped himself up on his elbow. Keely crossed her arms behind her head and stared up at the sky.

"I can't wait until summer," Keely said.

Phil picked a wildflower with his free hand and dangled it over Keely's cheek, "How come?" he asked.

"That tickles!" she said. Phil tucked the flower into her hair. "I can't wait til summer so we can spend every day together," she said, gazing into his eyes.

Phil eased closer to her, until their bodies touched. He moved one arm into the grass on the other side of Keely and leaned his torso over her until his face was directly above hers. "Me neither," he said. Then he closed his eyes and kissed her gently. What felt like a ball of heat moved through Phil, from the tips of his toes into his throat. He wanted to kiss her forever.

Keely wrapped her arms around Phil's neck and pulled him closer. She felt the ground beneath her vanish. Every sound in the park disappeared. All she felt were Phil's lips on hers.

Finally, Phil lifted his head to look at her. He couldn't control his smile. He lay on his back next to Keely, and scooted his arm beneath her shoulders, pulling herclose to him.

"Hey Phil," Keely whispered. "You want me to answer your question from earlier?"

"Question? What question?" Phil asked.

"From before? You asked me if you were a good kisser," she said.

"Oh, right," Phil said. "_That_ question. Well, sure then. Answer away."

"Incredible," Keely said.

Phil squeezed Keely's shoulder. "You too," he said.

And then they watched the sky, counting shooting stars. But Phil didn't wish on any—his wish had already come true.

The End.


End file.
